Can't procrastinate; Voices of the past; Hypocrite;
Bad news to start your day; Down the chimney;
Put your faith in drunks; Travel trunk; A breath of fresh air.

Reeve pocketed his PHS, brows knit. It seemed that he couldn't procrastinate any further. He'd put off the medical research in favor of engineering and planning new infrastructure for the planet. He was a civil engineer, not a doctor, and he'd never made any pretense of being one. Arguably, Cloud might be the one among AVALANCHE with the most medical knowledge, after all his time spent poring over medical journals during the geostigma epidemic.

There were at least a few small mercies for Reeve. Hollander was out of the way now, they had genetic samples for Hewley and Rhapsodos, and he wasn't going at this blind. He'd have Hojo's and Hollander's notes and was armed with a better understanding of what JENOVA was than either of them ever had. He also wasn't alone.

He turned to the other researchers in the makeshift workspace. "That was one of my companions. They're in Banora and have managed to get hold of Hojo's and Hollander's work."

"I suppose that's my cue, huh?" Joni set down the clipboard she held, taking notes for Sonia about soil samples. If any of them were going to have any success working on this, her background in studying the human aging process made her the most likely.

Morgan leaned back from the blueprints he and Reeve had been going over. "Will we need to send someone to Banora to pick everything up? Or are they going to bring it out?"

"We'll need to get it."

"It's a long trip," Joni added, "and I'll need a day or two to get everything ready. And that's assuming the jeep you brought still works."

Sonia, still riveted to her microscope, glanced up to suggest, "You could take our buggy."

"We need to return the jeep to Gongaga." It was the town's spare vehicle after all, and while the Fairs had said it was fine for them to take it, Reeve felt a bit guilty having not returned it. "You could take the buggy to bring everything back in."

"That's not a bad idea," Morgan said approvingly. "I don't think that jeep could carry much of a load without falling apart."

Sonia shook her head. "I'm not sure it'll even make it back to Gongaga. Gaia, it's a miracle it made it out here."

The others in the room laughed and nodded in agreement.

"You are going back to Gongaga?" Nanaki, the younger/past one, came into the room.

"Banora, actually, via Gongaga," Reeve explained.

"Are things not well with Vincent?" Red asked. Apparently, he'd also come in, but been hidden by the size difference between himself and the younger cat.

Reeve quickly filled them in on what Cloud and Tifa's group had been doing. Red nodded along thoughtfully, and Nanaki hung on each word as though Reeve was reciting an epic tale. Of the researchers, Mabel and Ingrid seemed a bit put off by the scientists' deaths, while Marco, the zoologist, muttered about "just desserts".

"So we don't know where Hojo is now." Red sat with his tail curled pensively, obviously thinking of his role in going to Midgar.

"No, but he is out of the city. This may be the best chance you have to get in." He didn't mention Aerith. He trusted the researchers, but he wanted to avoid foisting undue attention on the Cetra. She was still young and unready to handle the attention this batch of idealists would give her. For now, Red alone would meet with her. If she was up to helping them, Red would stay in Midgar, Cait Sith would acting as his liaison between Midgar and Cosmo Canyon. If not, Red would return and they would brainstorm some new ideas.

He also needed to compile a list to send Cait Sith, items and further information that might be useful in finding a cure for degradation. Even with the help of Reeve's past counterpart, the A.I. would face difficulties getting it out of the city and all the way across the world to Cosmo Canyon. Times like this made him realize how much he'd taken for granted. Even as the unloved stepchild of the Shinra Board, he'd access to so many resources; even in the confusion and distress after Meteor, he had access to the Highwind and all the assistance of the other AVALANCHE members. It really was a pity that the Shera was stuck inside a cave.

Red stood, flicking his tail, and Reeve turned back toward him. "If I am to leave soon, then there is something I need to do." He faced the taller cub. "There is something you must see."

"What is this place?" Nanaki peered over the edge of the stone path at the water, stained red with iron, shining darkly below them.

"This is the cave of the Gi."

"The Gi!?"

"It was just over twenty years ago, the final battle with the Gi."

Deneh growled low in her throat. Born a few years earlier than Nanaki, she had a clearer memory of the fighting that killed her parents and the rest of their kin.

His younger self looked over the stone edge a moment longer then hung his head in shame. "This is where our father fought?"

He had already told them of the battle here and it's importance, the final assault from the Gi tribe. Young Nanaki, disbelieving, had argued. Not to put too fine a point on it, he'd whined. It was a harsh and unpleasant thing, to hate someone for years only to learn that your hate was based on a lie you'd told yourself. In the weeks that they had been here, he could see his younger-self coming to terms with the truth. Now was the final push. "Yes."

He took a few steps forward and looked back at the cubs. "Be careful as you go. Ghosts of the Gi infest these paths now and they are capable of inflicting Death Sentence." Acquiring that spell for the Enemy Skill materias AVALANCHE held had been a real ordeal, however, it proved a useful way for them to level up their Revive materia, the spawn of which he carried now.

They were but thirty feet into the cave system when the first gaunt discolored form rose from the ground. He waited for a moment before attacking, making sure the cubs got a good look at the spectre. He was unsure of the strength the Gi held in life, but in death they held little challenge against the strength and skill he'd acquired. But never would he think of them as weak or as lesser opponents, for they had killed almost all of his kin. He readied a spell and fire bloomed, hot energy burning away the vengeful spirit as its last cries echoed down the underground tunnels. As if that doomed cry was a rallying call for reinforcements, more Gi specters rose from the earth and red water.

The cubs stayed close to his flanks, Deneh hissing and swiping at any Gi that got near her, Nanaki so subdued and unsettled that he was not able to do more than call out warnings as another wave approached. The sheer number of vengeful spirits made progress slow. As the tide ebbed he wondered, watching one withering away, if the Gi were in some way connected to JENOVA. They had attacked the canyon and his kin and there were records of the Gi tribe attacking the Cetra. Was their animosity the handiwork of that cursed virus? If the dissolving specters still had fleshly bodies he would take a sample for Reeve and Joni to look at. Instead, all he could do was speculate how much damage to the planet the alien virus had caused.

After clearing the final chamber, temporarily subduing the Gi chief Nattak, they made it to the cavern's back entrance. Light from the fading sun turning the stone walls to a glowing golden red. Seto, high on a ledge, looked the color Nanaki remembered him in life, not the dull grey stone of death. "There, above. This is where our father has been."

The younger cub crept forward, shy or embarrassed. Seto, locked in stone during his final fight, was the last, undeniable refutation to Nanaki's belief that their father was a coward. The first time Nanaki came here, he already recognized himself as a warrior, fighting alongside AVALANCHE. And, still, looking at Seto's body pierced through with spears, snarling soundlessly forever at long-dead enemies, he'd been awed and humbled by his father's sacrifice. Young Nanaki, who hung his head in shame, had no such claim or achievement to bring before their father.

The evening wind rippled through the canyon, moaning hollowly against the sandstone, and he began to sing. Not in any human language, not any tongue he'd learned as he grew, but one much older, that he'd been born knowing. The howled notes rolled up the glowing walls, up to their father, up to the sky. Nanaki and Deneh soon joined him. On the wind, mingling with their voices, he could swear he heard his ancestors join them.

"They should travel with you tomorrow."

"What?" Red half-turned on the steps carved into the stone, interrupted on his way to bid farewell to Reeve.

Bugenhagen floated behind him, arms folded. "Journeying seems to have been good for you. It will be good for them too to see the world outside the canyon."

Red's tail twitched and his ears flattened a bit. Taking them to Midgar, right beneath the company's feet? Hojo may not be in the city, but Red was wary of every member of that scientist's department, down to the lowliest intern. "Midgar is not a safe place for them," he reminded his grandfather. "And one of my kin must always remain in the canyon. I would not wish to pick between the cubs, forcing one to stay behind." There, that was an argument Bugenhagen must accept. The ceremony of stasis technically required two great cats, but Deneh had performed the ritual alone when he'd been dragged away to Midgar, and no unusual ill befell the canyon in his absence. He did not want to risk seeing what happened if none of his people were here.

"Ho, hohohoooo, Seto is still here to see that obligation filled."

Red tilted his head, considering, remembering tears falling from Seto's stone eyes. At least a part of his father's spirit remained inside the statue in the canyon. That may be enough for safety. He still didn't want the cubs in Midgar. "They will make me uneasy, and I must focus on my task."

Bugenhagen sighed, so Nanaki added, "I will take them once it is safe."

His grandfather floated downwards so that they ended up nearly eye-to-eye. "Nanaki, your concern does you credit. But if you never face a challenge you never grow. Take them with you." The old man reached out and patted Nanaki's head softly, the trailing purple fabric of his sleeve tickling Nanaki's whiskers. "You're trying to change the future they also will live in. Let them help shape it."

The conversation among AVALANCHE as they split the groups came to Nanaki's mind. He'd argued for letting Marlene and Denzel choose who to accompany. This must have been how those against the idea had felt. Would it make him a hypocrite to not let them come with him now? Neither had asked to accompany him, but perhaps they had not even thought of it as an option.

"All right, Grandfather. I will ask whether they wish to join me."

Of course, they did.

The next morning Red was woken long before sunrise by Marcos, who was still in pajamas, tousle-haired and bleary-faced. "Sorry for the bad hour, but Reeve needs to talk to you. He seems really worried."

With great alarm, Red extracted himself from between the two sleeping cubs, curled warmly on the woven rugs of their room.

"Huh? Is it time to go already?" Nanaki yawned widely, tongue curling. Deneh curled more tightly in on herself and did not rouse.

"Perhaps." He paused by the bedroom's door. "Wake Deneh and have breakfast, I'll be back when I can." He left the cub blinking sleep from his amber eyes while he followed Marcos' long strides down the stone steps from the observatory to the researcher's hut, which was on the lowest plateau of the mesa, on the far side of the stony column from the Candle.

Stars were still in the sky and only a hint of pink showed the sun's approach on the eastern horizon as Marcos pushed open the dry wooden door. Reeve was on the phone, standing, with his eyebrows drawn together and his lips pressed tightly together. His black hair, normally combed neat, was a messy bedhead with obstinate locks curling upward. Joni and Morgan were also up, looking just as worried.

"Reeve, what has happened?"

The teen glanced at him. "Vincent, Red's here. Let me bring him up to speed." He sat down, bringing himself closer to Red's level and put his PHS on speaker. "Shinra has found the Shera."

Red's heart dropped. His hackles rose. "How?"

"After Hollander's death, Shinra decided to check the caves."

"Does Cid know?"

Vincent's voice next. "I don't intend to tell Cid. There is nothing he could do to improve the situation without risking his own mission."

Red nodded, accepting that Vincent would know best. "Where are Cloud and Tifa? Can they double back?"

"They're returning to Nibelheim. The Turks have taken interest in their families."

"Damn." Reeve shook his head "They've backed us into a corner, haven't they?"

They really had. But Shinra could not be permitted to get access to the airship. "I could go to Nibelheim instead," Nanaki offered.

Reeve frowned. "But how would you get them to leave with you?"

That would be a challenge. From Tifa's occasional reminiscences and Nanaki's own few visits to the isolated town, he knew the villagers were sharp-eyed about dangerous wildlife getting too close to the village. Even if he could sneak in, he would still appear to be a monster to the Strifes and the Lockharts, though rather a small one.

The group was silent for a moment, Marcos shifting uncomfortably by the door, while Joni and Morgan shared an unhappy look. Vincent broke the silence. "Reeve? The two SOLDIERs still have time. Correct?"

Reeve ran his fingers through his hair, leaving it even more of a bird's nest. "A few years, yes."

"Then we make the Nibel families our priority. If Shinra reclaims the documents aboard this ship, they are unlikely to destroy them. If need be, we can find them again. The ship itself can go into lockdown to keep the company from using it."

"Vincent," Joni stepped closer to the phone, "is there any way to copy the most pertinent documents and send them over digitally?"

"We can try."

"Then that's what we'll do." Reeve stood, brushing off his pants. "And I think you're right to not tell Cid."

Red nodded his agreement. If Cid found out his precious ship was under threat, he'd react… poorly, and detonate any chance of installing new leadership at Air and Space. That meant leaving Barret and Shera out of the loop as well. "Should we tell Cloud and Tifa?"

Reeve pressed his fingers to his temple. "No, I think that group also has enough to worry about. Let them focus on getting their families out."

Morgan also stepped forward, joining Joni beside Reeve. "What about you, Vincent? Will you be alright with Shinra on your doorstep?"

The marksman's tone was clipped. "We will be fine."

"Then I suppose we should let you go." There was the swift click of a phone hanging up. "No time wasted," Reeve chuckled wearily, returning the phone to its mount. "It seems an inauspicious start to your travels, Nanaki."

Nanaki led the cubs out of the canyons and into the scrub and grasslands beyond. His legs moved automatically, trotting over sparse dry grass, disturbing whirring brown grasshoppers and tiny pale butterflies. A small glossy black bird flew in front of them from one ocotillo stalk to another, trilling a warning of their presence to other prey animals. His mind kept turning thoughts over. Both geostigma and the degradation were wasting illnesses caused by JENOVA. How closely were the two related? They never had a scientific cure for geostigma; it was only thanks to Aerith's healing rain that they'd managed to get ahead of the disease. But in this time, she didn't have Great Gospel.

He stopped so suddenly, the cubs nearly stepped on him. Alarmed, they looked ahead. Nanaki's ears lay back and Deneh's hackles rose.

"Is something wrong?"

"Is it a monster?"

He didn't respond right away. The weapon seller along the coast, would he have Aerith's limit break? Or was it too early yet? He turned to the cubs. "We're going to make an extra stop."

He changed their main direction from mostly northeast to a little south. They walked with purpose. Red was an experienced traveler, but his legs were stubby. Nanaki and Deneh covered ground more quickly but lacked stamina. They repeatedly drew ahead of him, though they sensibly stayed within earshot or smelling distance. In the shade of small, cloudy-green trees or beside muddy springs they would stop for rests, allowing Red to catch up. He did not need to stop as often, but he drank from the shallow pools, shaking his head at the clouds of insects that congregated around the oases.

Red fought the few monsters they encountered until they were weakened and slow before stepping back and letting the cubs finish them off. Deneh rushed in headlong and he had to Cure her often. Nanaki tended to hang back, looking for openings, though his inexperience meant he missed many that were clear to his older self. Eventually, they found a rhythm. With Deneh distracting the monster from the front, Nanaki could sink his claws and teeth into its hindquarters or back, giving Deneh the opportunity she needed to go for the throat.

The sun faded into golden angular light, and the shadows stretched out around them. Stars dotted across the purpling sky. They found a shallow scrape at the base of an oblong boulder to offer some security for the night. Most creatures knew to stay away from fire and their tails, bright in the gathering darkness, were beacons of warning.

It took several days for them to reach the remote cabin. Forest coated the nearby hills, but the weapons seller's house was on a broad grassy peninsula. Even from a distance, Red could see the windows were tightly shuttered and the scent trail of the man who lived inside had almost faded from the worn path winding toward it. Of course, the man wasn't home, he rarely was. Now what?

"Perhaps we can wait?" Nanaki offered.

Red sighed. "We could end up waiting a whole month."

Deneh sat down, frustrated. "Then what do we do?"

He considered the shutters, the barred door. He could almost hear Yuffie whispering in his ear. "We're going to break in."

Both cubs looked at him, astonished and clearly appalled. The only sort of enforced security at home was that dedicated to keeping the mesa itself secure. No houses had locks in Cosmo Canyon, but that such measures were common in the world beyond was well-known to them, that the concept of privacy and respect for others' possessions was not universal out here. He could see them thinking that his eye was not the only thing he'd lost in his time away from the canyon.

He himself didn't like the idea of breaking in. It was not the best solution, but it was the only one that worked with the time they had. It wasn't as though he could write the man a note asking for the manual to be sent by mail order. Leaving aside the unhappy logistics of writing a note with paws and no paper, he didn't even know if the weapon seller owned the manual yet. Stuck to his course, he tried to figure a way in that wouldn't damage the building. He could break through the locked door or wooden shutters, but he'd like to avoid adding injury to insult.

He remembered a wooden floor inside, which ruled digging out also. He glanced toward the shingle roof and the blackened chimney. Well, he was small.

"Nanaki, can you get up on those boxes stacked over there?"

"Those ones? Yes."

"Please do so."

Nanaki hopped up onto the wood crates and looked at him expectantly, waiting to hear what he was supposed to do next.

"Deneh, if you stood on your hind legs on Nanaki's back, do you think you could reach the roof with your front paws?"

The cubs caught on to what he was trying to do. "I think I could make it." She bounded onto the boxes next to Nanaki, then a bit clumsily, she clambered onto his back. The younger cub grunted, bracing himself.

"Hold still," she muttered.

"I'm trying, but you're nicking me with your claws."

"Because you're moving."

"I'm only breathing."

"And talking! Quit doing both for a moment."

Gaining her balance, she stretched up to stand on her hind legs, paws slightly short of the roof. "Alright, you can breathe again."

Nanaki let out a whooshing lungful of air.

"Gently! And arch your back."

As Nanaki inhaled again, spine rising, Red heard Deneh's claws dig into the wood. Nanaki winced a little, and Red winced in sympathy for his younger counterpart. Deneh's blunted hind claws were undoubtedly digging into his back.

"Do you think you can get up there?"

"If you are willing to let me climb up and jump from your head."

"Then hurry up, it's awkward standing here."

He scrambled up the boxes then onto Nanaki's shoulders. With great care to keep his claws from piercing Deneh's skin, he climbed up her back and onto her skull. The perch was precarious and he still couldn't quite reach the roof. He would indeed have to jump.

"I'm going to jump on the count of three." He braced, the others doing the same below him. "One," he crouched, "two," bunched his muscles, "three," leapt.

He heard the cubs call out, Deneh losing her balance. His claws sunk into the eave, back paws scrabbling to gain purchase. He heard crash below as he managed to heave himself over the edge. Turning, he looked down to see the two a tangle of limbs on the ground, trying to get upright. "Are you both alright?"

"I'll be fine when Nanaki stops sitting on me."

"You are on my tail."

Red shook his head. He turned his attention to the chimney. The bricks were cool, and while it smelled strongly of smoke, that was only from years of use. He hooked his claws into the mortar as best he could, climbing to the top. Then, with some work, he shimmed down the flue, praying that he would not get stuck. It was a tight fit, even for him. He stopped briefly for a spate of sneezing when soot got into his nose. He finally fell into the grate and came out more black than red. Leaping down and taking a deep breath of fresh air, he wondered grumpily when the last time the chimney had been swept. He'd performed that service now, in exchange for the manual. On the other hand, the owner would have a time sweeping away all the sooty footprints.

Nanaki's voice came muffled through the door. "You made it in?"

Red unlatched the door, stretching as high as his short stature would allow. A long rectangle of sunlight poured into the dark interior, and the cubs, looking rather ashamed of themselves, followed slowly.

"Look for books," he told them.

Not remembering where in the house the manual was kept, he poked his nose into all manner of places. Bookshelves, counters, cupboards, boxes, and chests. He could hear the cubs whispering to each other, marveling at the weaponry and at how otherwise similar the cabin's furnishings were to a house in the Canyon. Their dismay at the robbery had clearly been muted by novelty and adventure.

While standing on a counter to look through the upper shelves, he spotted a familiar item - the Keystone, smooth and grey, embedded with flakes of glittering materia, sat collecting dust on a shelf's back corner. He froze as all that stone led to flooded through his mind. The Temple of the Ancients, Cait Sith's sacrifice, Cloud's fractured mind, the Black Materia, Meteor. He couldn't leave it here, but he dreaded taking it.

Carefully he reached his paw out and rolled it closer. Its glitter was deceptive, he thought, staring at it. Fool's gold. It would be so easy to drop it in a swift-flowing river or dig a deep, deep hole and bury it. No one needed to know, it could be forgotten, lost to everyone.

Deceitful. How could he lie to the others like that? It would weigh on him, as surely as carrying the stone itself would feel like carrying a bomb. He was feeling guilty enough today with his thievery, he would not add to it. Gently he took it in his teeth. A frisson passed over him, the stone unnaturally cold in his mouth. It was accompanied by a slight feeling of ridiculousness - he felt rather like a human child, cheeks bulging comically around a jawbreaker. Hopping to the floor, he left it waiting by the door. He would tell the others and as a group, they would decide what to do with the Keystone and the Black Materia it led to.

He found the slim leather book that contained information about Great Gospel in a chest with a few other antique books under the man's bed.

"Did you find what you were looking for?" Deneh asked, squeezing, dust-covered, from behind a low dresser.

"Yes, and I'll need you to carry them." He showed them the items and they sniffed at them carefully. They couldn't even leave gil behind to pay for them, as the pouch around his neck was near impossible to get on and off without human help. After a moment's inspection, Deneh took the Keystone while Nanaki bit hold of the manual. Mouths full, they looked at him expectantly.

"I believe it is time for us to make our way north. With some luck we can catch a boat, without luck we'll need to stow away."

Reaching the large bay where the great western river fed into the ocean, it took them a while to find someone willing to take them across to the north shore. Eventually, they found a fisherman who didn't run away yelling about monsters or try to attack them with spear, trident, harpoon or gun. Granted, that was because at the sight of them, he'd gotten himself tangled in his net. They helped the man extricate himself, and seeing that they were intelligent and benignly disposed, he agreed to take them across.

They made their way along the coastline to Costa Del Sol, resting during the day at secluded coves or abandoned beaches. Deneh and Nanaki were delighted by the sea, chasing each other and the seabirds, feinting, doubling back, making hairpin turns that kicked up sprays of sand or saltwater. Red's young body demanded sleep to make up for the concerted effort of travel, and though he tried to keep a wary eye open, the job of sentry was frequently left to the cubs.

Monsters were not a terrible hindrance. The great cats had keen ears and noses, and aggressive wildlife was unable to get a jump on them. Journeying at night was mainly to avoid running into humans, after seeing how the fishermen reacted. He'd never found casual travel among the bipeds to be a problem before, but that was because he'd traveled first with AVALANCHE, then later often, with Cait Sith. As the WRO grew and AVALANCHE's fame and faces spread around the planet, people began to recognize him. After the healing rain, the members of AVALANCHE had taken to carrying and handing out vials of water from the wellspring. He'd been no exception. This cure caused people's opinion of AVALANCHE to grow even higher, to the point where he would be stopped by random strangers, thanked or asked for a photo. He could wish that the cubs' first encounters with humans outside of the canyon were a little friendlier, but at least they were better than his first encounter.

As they drew closer to Costa del Sol they began having to avoid Shinra patrols, and the shores themselves began filling with partygoers and holiday-makers. The darkness was no longer much help, for their fiery tails were mistaken for the torches of vacationers and calls rang out inviting them to join the crowds around the bonfires. If they did not pass quickly, the rest of their features were seen and a shout of "Monsters!" would go up… unless the revelers were really, truly drunk. These ran over to them, cooing and trying to pet them.

The third such group to try, made of three couples, were delighted to find that they could talk and invited them back to their fire for drinks. Red found himself rather amused by the situation, but Nanaki and Deneh hung back uneasily, standing close together for comfort. "I'm afraid we must decline your offer, as we still have some distance to travel this evening."

"Oh? Where you going?" a young woman in a yellow bikini and wrap asked, slurring just a bit.

One of the more drunken men in the group laughed. "They're going to the fish house obviously!"

Red shook his head, still amused. "Close."

"Twenty questions! Love that game." The man stumbled a bit, spilling some of his beer.

"Mark, sit down before you hurt yourself," a woman in a long sleeveless cardigan, the only mostly sober one in the group, instructed, steering the wobbling man towards a folding chair.

"I wanna talk to the fire kitties," the man moaned.

Deneh gave a low growl at the demeaning moniker. Red flicked an ear at her and sat down in the sand to indicate his comfort with the situation. Hostility from her could ruin this moment, and he was beginning to have the faintest inkling of an idea.

"Are all of you on holiday?"

"Just started," replied the woman in the cardigan.

"We're going on a cruuuiiise tomorrow. Down to the southern islands." The bikini girl, stretching to reach a wary Deneh, tripped over her sandals and fell giggling to the sand. "The southern islaaannnds," she said again.

"Sounds as though it should be a good time."

Another of the men, crouched in the sand and clucking at Nanaki as though trying to attract a chicken, interrupted his silliness to pronounce, "It's gonna be awesome."

"By chance, would it be possible to impose on you to take us to the docks with you tomorrow?" He sensed Nanaki and Deneh's dismay and swished his tail to quiet them.

"Fish house!" Mark yelled.

"Not quite," Red chuckled. "We are trying to head for the East Continent, but unfortunately, most think we are monsters and are prone to attacking us. If you could escort us to a ship, however, the captains we need to hire will likely be less afraid."

The mostly-sober woman hummed thoughtfully. "East Continent, like Junon?"

"Near there."

"You could come with us," said the young woman in the bikini, who was now heaping sand over her legs, burying herself.

"Yeah! The cruise ship picks up more passengers."

"Actually, we're getting off there."

"We could smuggle you aboard!"

"Or say you're our pets!" The humans laughed. Red chuckled politely, though Deneh and Nanaki had now retreated so far they were off the beach altogether, back in the rustling grass that grew on the dunes.

The cardigan woman crouched down beside Red. "Seriously, if you really need to get there, we could probably figure a way to get you on our ship."

Not quite what he'd been thinking when starting the conversation, but it was a good offer. Still, would the group be willing to go through with it when sober in the morning? Having watched any number of drunken events unfold at Seventh Heaven, he was unsure how much faith he could place in these individuals.

As it turned out, he could place quite a bit. When not falling over drunk, Mark and his companions were very capable individuals. The cruise ship did not allow pets, according to their brochure. But after watching others board, Patra, the woman in the cardigan, and her girlfriend of the yellow bikini reported that the ongoing luggage was not checked. A quick shopping trip later, and Nanaki, Deneh, the Keystone, and the manual for Great Gospel were stowed away in a pair of travel trunks. (Red insisted on paying for them from the gil pouch around his neck, still feeling pangs over guilt over their robbery of the weapons seller.) He himself fit into a large beach bag with a towel laid over top of him.

The cabin was small, but not unbearably so. The humans brought food back but spent most of their time availing themselves of the amenities and activities aboard, leaving the great cats with the run of the suite for much of the day. The cubs were not so able to bear being cooped up as Red was, so when Patra and the others were out on deck, Red kept them entertained with more tales of AVALANCHE's exploits. The cubs particularly enjoyed the story of the time they had stowed away on a Shinra vessel disguised as sailors.

Red had a certain amount of trepidation about staying with the humans, a sort of nerves that differed from Nanaki and Deneh's reluctance. Kind and competent as they had proven to be, he did not want to draw them into trouble. As the trip passed without incident, he began to relax, but when he awoke on the last morning and smelled a faint whiff of oil, rust, and rotting algae through the porthole, tension ran through him again. Junon was a Shinra city.

They made landfall in the early afternoon, the cubs once again in the travel trunks, and Red in the beach bag. Disembarking was slow, long queues forming before the exit ramps, which angled upwards to the long, coppery, artificial harbor wall. As they had taken rather a long time to pack, they ended up at the back end of the lines. Slung over Patra's shoulder and stoically riding through every shift of movement, Red strained to sense what was causing the delay. The towel slung over him smelled strongly of laundry soap and sunscreen, but the walls of the bag were thinner, and he could hear the passengers grumbling about the delay. There - was that the sound of boots on metal? Or there - that gruff voice barking orders - was that a trooper or merely one of the ship's officers?

A light feminine voice, sounding bored, "I'm going to go see what's taking so long." Anitsa, Patra's girlfriend. Red wanted to applaud. Even if she was merely doing it from impatience, here was finally someone with the sense to gather some information. She was back in three minutes, tugging Patra's arm and pulling her out of line. Red pricked up his ears. "They're inspecting the large luggage," Anitsa whispered urgently.

Patra stiffened, the bag jolting with the movement. Inside, Red did not ride it as easily as he had before, too suddenly tense himself. "Why?" asked Patra, more calmly than she clearly felt.

"I dunno, Wutai spies or something."

"Alright, we still have a while before it's our turn. Tell the others. I'm going back to the rooms for a minute."

She broke into a jog, but rather than going down a deck to their suite, she turned in at the first open room she found. She set down the bag, and Red popped his head above the towel. She'd tucked them in under a desk in the concierge lounge, empty right now. "You heard?"

"Yes." The large luggage, eh? Most likely he could get past safely, but the two steamer trunks were of a size to hold a small human and would certainly be checked.

Patra bit her lip, thinking, and then offered, "Well, what can they really do? You're already here, and you're clearly not Wutai spies. They're not going to chuck you in the ocean."

Despite his nerves, Nanaki almost laughed at the image. "No, nor do I imagine they want the expense of shipping us back. All the same, I'd rather that you and the others not be arrested for smuggling. The hardest part is over with. Let us deal with it from here."

Her jaw dropped. "I don't think so! We're not just going to abandon you!"

Red almost laughed again. Humans! His early experiences with Hojo and his scientists had nearly soured him against the whole species, bar those in the Canyon, but again and again, he was reminded what a foolish thing it had been to write them off as wicked, as like the Gi.

"Patra, please don't worry. I know I look very young and fragile, but I truly can handle this situation."

He had to argue with her for another five minutes, but he did persuade her. They returned to the others, whose position in line had shifted forward only a few yards. Red, listening, could hear that a good portion of the queuers had moved away from the line and were crowded along the rail. Patra asked what had happened and Mark relayed the story in a hushed voice, choking back laughter.

A wealthy couple had apparently refused to let their luggage be inspected. The troopers had pried it from their hands anyway and busted open the lock upon one. The large suitcase, stuffed to capacity, had burst open and scattered its contents. And, well, the contents had been of an exceedingly intimate nature. The troopers had been embarrassed by what they found, and the couple were embarrassed and were screaming about lawsuits, everyone with a view along the rail had a good laugh, and on top of the wall the frippery was still being gathered back up. Anitsa, giggling, relayed that she felt a little bad for them, but from down here it had all come across as slapstick.

The attention of the crowd being fixed on the dock meant this was clearly the ideal time to part. Patra and Mark took hold of the wheeled cart with the trunks on it and pushed it back into the interior of the ship. Once out of sight of the deck, they popped the latches, allowing the cats to leap out. Deneh and Nanaki, startled to still be aboard, turned to Red immediately with their questions.

He thumped his tail, telling them to wait a moment. "Mark, Patra, thank you for all your help."

Mark grinned. "It'll make for a good story, I'll tell you that!"

Patra still looked worried, but she smiled too. "It's been fun. Good luck!"

Red nodded and turned away, leading the cubs to the lower decks. "Why aren't we getting off?" asked Deneh, wasting no time.

"Shinra is checking the luggage. They have no specific reason to be suspicious of us, but I'd rather avoid them, and keep our new friends out of trouble."

Both the cubs accepted this and followed without further complaint. They had to whisk out of sight of a crewmember once or twice but reached the lower corridors safely. Red took them along the halls, checking the cabin doors as he went. Finding a cracked one, he nosed it further open. At the far side above a cushioned bench were two portholes, almost hidden behind the mostly-drawn yellow curtains. He leapt up onto the bench, hooked his teeth over the window latch, and pulled. The round glass window swung open, but only halfway. He was small enough to fit comfortably, but it would be a struggle for the other two, and they wouldn't be able to easily adjust the angle of their fall to the water outside.

"It will be unpleasant," he said to the cubs, "but it's only a short drop." The swell went up and down, but even with bodies not suited for diving, the distance to the water was not dangerous. The scummy water below was more objectionable, but they would have to put up with it. The porthole was on the near side to the harbor wall, at the aft of the ship. The stern projected past where the harbor wall ended, and he could see the houses of Old Junon quite clearly from here. They could swim directly up to the sloping rocky beach and avoid having to sneak through the city.

He jumped, balanced briefly on the slim, circular sill, and then plunged into the dark blue water. The cold was a shock, and his fluffy infant fur did little to shield him. Still, blinking salt water out of his eyes, he struck out for the shore. He heard a splash behind him, and a minute later, another. With their longer legs, the cubs soon caught up with him, and he was startled into an alarmed twist when he felt teeth closing around the nape of his neck.

"Holf ftill," muttered his younger self, mouth full of fur. He thought of protesting but decided against it. This was clever thinking - he was smaller, slower and had less insulation. If being towed along got them more quickly to shore, so be it.

Nanaki let loose of him in the shallows, and Red made his own way up the rock beach. The tide was out, and they had a long way to walk, past tide pools filled with occasional tiny silvery fish, pink and purple anemones, crabs and shrimp in bright red and white. He did not remember such interesting creatures from his prior visits here and thought it likely that they had died out in the years between. From the number of pale, crumbling exoskeletons he crushed under his paws, they were dying out already.

Once under the shadow of the elevated airfield, hiding among the metal struts, he stopped and shook. The cubs shook also, moving apart so they didn't dispense water back onto each other. Deneh flopped down onto the earth and rolled, leaving damp stains on the bare rock.

Nanaki licked at his shoulder and made a face, tongue curling back on itself. "There is something wrong with this place."

"The air is not right," Deneh agreed, standing back up and shaking one last time.

"Pollution," Red answered.

The cubs looked at each, conferring. Deneh spoke again. "It's more than that. We smelled pollution back in Costa Del Sol. This is different. It's like the earth and air are sick."

"Ah, the Mako reactor. You can't see it, but there is an underwater reactor here. Midgar will be much worse."

Nanaki cocked his head. "But isn't that why Cait Sith left? To stop them using the reactors."

"Yes, but such things take time. Shutting down the reactors will likely take several years." And that was only once Shinra agreed to do so.

A little over a week later, they stood in the sunlight just before the shadow of the plate began. If Junon had felt sick, Midgar felt like a terminal illness. The earth was dry and cracked, and the foul air hung like a dead mouse on a thorn spike. Over the noise of the city, voices and machinery, he heard a more familiar sound. Looking up, he saw the Highwind passing overhead. Nostalgia buried itself deep in his chest. He wondered if Cid, Barret, Marlene, and Shera were alright, and how the Shera and Vincent were holding out.

Deneh set the Keystone down and craned her head to track the aircraft's progress. "Red, what is that?"

"An airship. The younger self of one of our allies flies it."

Nanaki released his hold on the manual, a soft puff of dust rising as the book hit the ground. "Have you ever flown?"

"Many times. Often aboard that very ship."

Cid must have been burning the engines. The Highwind was moving at top speed. They watched till it was just a dark speck on the horizon.

Red turned back to the city. "Stay close to me. This city is not the safest place."

The plate above was incomplete. More light shone into the understory than he remembered, but the air was still one of prevailing gloom. Trash and discarded items still lay in the gutters, and the stench of sewage, smoke, exhaust, and mako prevailed in the air. Cameras in the metal spanning the plate's underside recorded their entrance to the slums. Their issue earlier would probably prove a boon here - they were likely to be taken as mere monsters, sneaking in to scavenge.

He was wary of going straight to the church and opted instead to weave through the side streets and back alleys, the cubs poking their noses into crevices and peering with curiosity upward and around corners. Their faces flickered through expressions, awe fighting with disgust.

In a narrow lane between a twenty-four laundry and a loan office, they surprised a pack of feral dogs fighting over a pigeon corpse. The canines scattered as they became aware of the great cats, and Red's nose wrinkled as they passed the torn-apart carcass. Suddenly, like a green thread winding through the city, he picked up the scent of flowers, a slight breath of clean air. Aerith must have already started her garden.

They approached the gray stone church from the western side, Red sniffing the air for the bouquet of scents he associated with Turks - clean, starched clothing, regular showers, the batteries in their electric batons, gunsmoke and gun oil. (Reno had a slightly different profile - he smelled exactly as though he slept in his clothes.) He decided that one had been in the vicinity in the last two days, but none were present now. He remained cautious though and circled around back. The wooden vicar door swung open with a quiet squeak of the hinges. The three slipped inside. Nanaki and Deneh remained on alert, but Red could feel the peace here. It was not only coming from inside him, his memories, but traveled in through his nose, in the fresh scent of earth and growing things. Up through his legs, as though the wooden planks and the stone blocks of the walls were giving it to him as a gift. Ahead, he could smell two people, layered alongside a woody scent, as of old lumber freshly exposed to air.

A woman's voice, guarded with the faintest hint of fear, called out, "Hello, is someone there?"

He recognized it as Elmyra's. "Yes, and we mean you no harm."

He led the cubs to the main chapel, where he saw Elmyra, hair not yet streaked with grey. She had a canister of pepper spray clutched in her gloved hand, and a young Aerith stood slightly behind her. To judge by the pile of splintered wood and the dropped hammer beside them, they had been pulling up floorboards. The flower garden past them was smaller than the one in the ruins of Midgar, and the cluster of yellow and white flowers not as thick.

He sat down a non-threatening distance away. "Hello. My name is Red, and these are Nanaki and Deneh." The cubs nodded and sat. Despite the threat of pepper spray, the tension was leaving them too. This place had that effect. "It's a pleasure to meet you."

Aerith tilted her head, considering them. Elmyra asked, hefting the pepper spray, "What do you want?"

"We're from Cosmo Canyon. Our species is very close to the planet." Elmyra's eyebrows snapped up at this, then swiftly drew back down. Aerith closed her eyes, suddenly intent. "We cannot hear its words, only its cries or its laughter. A whisper, at most."

Elmyra spoke very clearly. "That doesn't explain what you are doing here."

"Mom." Aerith opened her eyes again and put her hand on her mother's back. "I think it's okay."

"We would like your advice," he said, nodding to Aerith. "And we have brought a gift."

A/N:

We wanted to have this chapter up a few days ago so we could crack jokes about Nanaki Claus coming down the chimney, but alas, we didn't wrap up in time.

At the beginning of December, we had one chapter almost ready to go: the one about what's going on with Air & Space. But we're following multiple characters here and trying to keep their arcs roughly chronological, and following that thread would have left Nanaki and Reeve further behind. So after some debate, we decided this chapter clearly had to be next, even though all that had been written of it is that opening scene with Reeve and the researchers. (Here's where you say: C'mon guys, it's only 7,000 words over a month! That's not hard to knock out! To which we say: *cries softly and slams fists on keyboard*)

Also, finally! Aerith! Two seconds of her!